


Blindsided AU Drabbles

by DashWrites, suitboxers



Series: Blindsided AU [1]
Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types
Genre: Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Raph being insecure, TMNT AU, beefy!donnie, blind!leo, cute family moments, depressed!raph, sainw au, tall!mikey
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-16
Updated: 2016-12-13
Packaged: 2018-08-31 08:15:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 10,603
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8571103
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DashWrites/pseuds/DashWrites, https://archiveofourown.org/users/suitboxers/pseuds/suitboxers
Summary: Drabbles for an AU I'm making with dashtumbles & sassatello, where essentially Leo's been blind since before he can remember and the effect this has on his family and the way they interact with him (their personalities/story are most in line with 2k3). He's still the leader, and an amazing fighter, but it's the little things where the difference is obvious. --C01: Leo BromentsC02: Leo's FluC03: The Coffeetron 9000 feat. Don/Mikey.C04: Help feat. DonnieC05: Family Broments feat. PainC06: Hydrophobia feat. Leo/RaphC07: Tonsillitis feat. Don/RaphC08: Scar Stories feat. Raph/SplinterC09: Growing Pains





	1. Leo Broments

**Author's Note:**

> Written by Az

Leo sighs to himself as the sounds of his brothers skating/riding around the lair reach his ears, their whoops and yells echoing throughout the underground chamber. Retracting his cane, he slips it into his belt and heads towards the kitchen to help Master Splinter with the tea.

“Check me out! Extreme green!”

“You think that's good? Check this!”

“Aw, no fair Donnie, you tricked out your bike again?”

“Shell yeah I did!”

Leo smiles to himself, shaking his head fondly as he toes the kitchen door and steps into the room. His hand glides along the kitchen bench as one of his brothers whoosh past the entrance. At least they're having fun.

“Ah, Leonardo,” Sensei says, warmth in his voice as he takes Leo's hand into his own and glides it over to the tea set, “Could you carry this for me?”

He grabs the small tray and lifts it up, smiling in the direction of his sensei's voice, “Of course. Anything else?”

“No, that will do,” Sensei chuckles, guiding Leo from the room with a hand on his shell, “This way I can protect us from your unruly brothers.”

Leo rolls his eyes fondly, lifting the tray over his head and stepping to the side moments before Raphael skates past with an absent-minded apology. He lowers the tray and sends a knowing look in Master Splinter's general direction.

“Oh, just let an old rat worry about his son for once,” Sensei admonishes, amusement lacing his voice as he leads Leo towards the living area, “If only for his own peace of mind.”

Leo laughs out loud and lets him.

–

Raph's fingers ghost over his latest framework of scars, a particularly nasty large set of gashes on his right thigh that Donnie couldn't quite fix. Add them to every other scratch, nick and line covering his body and he's really turning out to be nothing but one giant pin cushion.

Leo's cane taps against the ground as he enters the bathroom, pausing at the threshold.

“Raph, is that you?” He asks after a beat, ice blue eyes darting around the room pointlessly.

Raph snorts humourlessly, stepping away from the mirror, “Yeah, just finishin' up. Gimme a sec and the bathroom's all yours, fearless.”

Leo shoots him an unimpressed look, closing his cane and slipping it into his belt.

“Hey, don't gimme that look,” Raph grunts, washing his hands under the tap for lack of anything better to do and wiping them dry on the towel, “Lemme know if ya need anything.”

Raph goes to leave the room but a hand on his plastron stops him. He looks down at his older brother, cocking his brow.

“What?”

“You look fine, you know that right?” Leo says after a moment, almost glaring at the hand on Raph's plastron.

He snorts, “You're blind, Leo.”

“That's not what I meant and you know it,” Leo replies with a groan, fingering his closed cane, “What I meant to say is your scars make you who you are, they're a part of you.”

Raph sighs heavily and shifts his stance, folding his arms and knocking Leo's palm away in the process.

“Outta my way, Leo.”

“No, wait,” he continues, pinching the bridge of his beak and looking off towards the side, “This isn't coming out right. I'm trying to say... how do I put this?” he sighs, dropping his hand, “You like to protect us, right? Even though it isn't necessary sometimes.”

Raph narrows his eyes and cocks his hip slightly.

“I guess...?”

“You'll do anything to protect your family,” Leo says, looking in the general direction of Raph's face, “Even if it means sacrificing yourself, right?”

“I guess,” Raph repeats, “Seriously, where are ya goin' with this Leo? 'Cause if ya are just tryin' to get me to spend less time in the shower then just quit while you're ahead bro, 'cause it ain't happening.”

“ _No_ , what? This isn't about your _shower time_ \- How? No, don't answer that,” Leo groans, folding his arms, “I am _trying_ to tell you that your scars are a result of you protecting our family, even if some of them could have been avoided if you'd just _listened to me_ -”

“Whoa, whoa, rewind for a second,” Raph says, somewhat stunned, “Are you tryin' to, what, cheer me up or somethin'? 'Cause I'm fine.”

“You were quiet for over ten minutes, Raph,” Leo replies with a frown.

Raph opens his mind to retort with... something, before closing it again and looking away. Shit, he was staring at the thing for ten minutes? No wonder Leo flipped out.

Raph jumps as something, Leo's hand, touches his lower bicep, before gliding up to rest on an older scar sitting on his right shoulder. He runs his finger over it light lightly before resting his palm over it, a small smile on his face.

“If it weren't for you, Mike would be nursing a cracked shell,” he says, “Try and think of it that way.”

Raph stares at him for a long moment before a small smile breaks out on his own face.

“Yeah, alright. Thanks, bro.”

–

“And... done!” Donnie announces from the left, the slight echo to his voice indicating he's at his workstation, “Leo, come over here for a sec. I wanna try something.”

Leo cocks his brow, turning towards Mikey's general direction – hopefully.

“Hey, don't look at me bro,” Mike replies, amused.

“ _Leo_!”

“He's comin' egghead, give him a minute,” Raph calls out from Leo's right, before a warm pressure against his shell urges him off of the couch, “Off ya get, I got a wrestlin' match coming up. Shoo.”

Leo rolls his eyes, withdraws his cane and makes his way towards Donnie as Mikey starts fighting Raph for the remote. _Brothers_.

Before his cane has the chance to tap against the bottom step of Donnie's makeshift train-carriage-turned-lab, two large calloused hands grip his shoulders from behind and usher him onto the platform.

“What-?” Leo protests as Donnie shoves him into a seat, taking his cane and placing it on a nearby table with a light clack, “Donnie-”

“Wait here for a moment, I've gotta do something real quick,” Donnie replies, patting his shell lightly and vanishing somewhere towards the right. Leo opens his mouth to protest, before closing it again and relaxing against the seat.

Some things just aren't worth arguing against.

“Ugh, you suck dude!” Mikey calls out from the living area, his feet slapping against the concrete as he approaches Donnie's makeshift lab, “Be thankful you can't see, bro, 'cause Raph's taste in TV makes me wanna pull my eyes out.”

“I heard that!”

“You were supposed to!” Mikey retorts, stepping into the train car.

Leo chuckles lightly, rotating the chair towards his youngest brother, “Wrestling again?”

“Yup,” Mikey groans, shell colliding with the table beside him, “Hey Donnie, what're ya doing?”

There's a pause and a short series of rustling sounds before Donnie replies from somewhere on his right, “I finally finished that thing I was working on for Leo.”

“No way,” Mikey replies, excited, “Lemme see!”

A few stomps and a smack resounded through the air, leading Leo to cock his eyebrow.

“Paws off, Mikey,” Donnie warns, before approaching Leo and placing something relatively heavy down onto the table behind him, “Alright, you ready bro?”

“I guess?” Leo replies after a long moment, turning to face the sound, “What's going on, Donnie?”

There's a few rustling sounds, almost like the pages of a book behind turned, before Donnie takes his hands and places them on the cover of a, well, book. He furrows his brow and allows his hands to explore the smooth surface, almost... disappointed by it.

“Donnie...” he says, exasperated, as he goes to remove his hands.

Donnie stops him, guiding them to the book's sides and opening the first page, “Try it now.”

Leo frowns, staring in his brother's direction for a long moment before finally releasing a deep sigh and returning his attention to the smooth surface of the book, gliding his fingers across the page only to come across a number of... bumps?

“What-?”

“It's Braille,” Donnie says, excitement lacing his tone as Leo allows his index finger to slowly glide over the text, piecing together the words letter by letter, “I know you're still learning to read it, but we thought if you had something other than those boring old childrens' books to work off of...”

“You might actually spend more time learning how to do it,” Mikey finishes for him, flanking his other side and resting a hand on his shell.

T... H... E... A... R...? T... O... F-

Leo's mouth drops open, his fingers gliding of the text once, twice more to double check that he's indeed 'reading' it correctly.

“Is this...?”

“The Art of War by Sun Tzu? You bet it is, bro,” Mikey says, excited, “That was my idea, by the way.”

“I- Wow, you guys... You didn't have to,” Leo replies, working his jaw open and shut a few times between sentences, shocked, “I'm- _wow_ , thank you. Both of you.”

“Hey, don't leave me out,” Raph calls out from nearby, startling Leo slightly, “Who do ya think had to get the printer in the first place?”

“I could've built one on my own,” Donnie protests.

“What? On top of everything else ya gotta do on a daily basis?” Raph snorts, landing in the train car with a light thud, “Believe it or not, ya gotta sleep some time bro. Least I could do.”

“I... don't wanna know,” Leo says after a beat, smiling as he closes the book's cover with as much care as he's able, “But thank you, Raph, Don, Mikey. I... I don't know what to say, I-”

A heavy arm lands on his head, followed by the pressure of someone leaning on it. Raph, most likely.

“Ah, don't sweat it,” Raph grunts from above, patting Leo's shoulder lightly, “Think of it as an early birthday present.”

Leo smiles, skimming the table for his cane and holding both items towards his chest.

 _Brothers_.

 


	2. Leo's Flu

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Written by Dash

“Why ain't Leo here? Is he still in the damn bathroom?pfft not like he's doin' his hair or make up.”

Last to the breakfast table Raphael let out a large yawn, adjusting his mask that was currently covering one eye hole, azure orbs blinking away sleep.

“He left like ehhhh sometime ago?”

Mikey replied between bites, busily stuffing cereal into his face while spreading jam on some toast at the same time, who said he couldn't multitask!

“ Here this will help.”

Donatello, already on his second ( possibly third ) Coffee pushed some of the sacred beverage before the red-banded turtle, who simply wrinkled his beak while making a show of stomping towards the fridge.

“ We're out of juice.”

Don stated, knowing exactly what his sibling would rather be drinking about now.

“ What?” at once Raph's gaze flickered to Mikey, eyeing the half empty glass.

“ What happens when ya sleep in dude, but before you go all emo on me, how about you go get Leo and I'll let you have what is left in the glass?, he might be with sensei, he did say he was gonna mediate before mornin' practice.

“Fine, whatever just don't you dare drink it all.”

Not that Raphael really cared, he was more worried that the oldest brother wasn't present at the breakfast table.

Usually Leonardo liked to reprimand anyone who turned up late, often resulting in extra training or meditation, so for him to have been there and gone already puzzled the hot-head.

 

Leo let out a groan, his currently curled up in the fetal position on the cold bathroom floor.

He'd woken up feeling groggy and almost detached to his surroundings, nothing he'd hoped a little splash of water before meditating with his father couldn't solve.

How wrong he'd been! The world had spun as a wave of dizziness assaulted him, and next the small turtle knew he was on the ground with his cane sliding across the floor.

That was at least men minutes ago now. Shakily Leo uncurled, flexing his body to check everything felt and worked okay. Thankfully nothing was broken, bruised maybe but not broken – thankfully.

He felt horrible, his head pounding with the most unrelenting headache known to mutant going on inside his head.

Leo had just been contemplating getting up when a not so subtle sound assaulted the door, the sound causing Leo to twinge, given how sharp his hearing was.

“ Oi fearless ya in here? Yer okay?”

Pressing his ear slit to the door, Raph waited a moment before removing a sai from his belt, starting to pick the at the lock.

“ Raph..I..”

Hearing his brothers voice was enough to convince Raph he needed to get in there, wasting no time in using his Sai to mangle the lock, turning the handle with clumsy hands as the door revealed Leo.

“ Shit..DONNIE.”

The way Raph had called his name had both turtles moving from the table, Mikey allowing Don to go first as they rushed as fast as they could to the bathroom.

Donatello moved past his taller siblings all business now, at once moving to his knees beside Leo, gently placing a hand on his brother's scarred shoulder.

Leo let out a grunt, pulling away from the resident genius' hand. “ c-cold.”

Frowning Don moved a hand to Leo's forehead, though the perspiration dripping down his face was indication enough his older brother was sick, the stubborn turtle always tried to deal with his problems or hide his sickness a trait Donatello particularly hated.

How had he not noticed earlier? Then again now he recalled it in his head Leo had walked in and walked back out not long after, he'd just been one coffee away of noticing something had been up.

“I'm cold you mean? Because you're very warm..lets get you back to bed.” Easily Don scooped up his lighter sibling, Leo being the shorted and lightest. Which came in handy for times such as these and made him formidable in combat, if you could keep up with the blind warrior to watch him long enough.

Raph moved to pick up Leo's cane, watching as the purple-banded mutant easily lifted Leo, carrying him bridal style straight to the leaders room.

Least Leo's disability hadn't been the cause of his fall, the way the leader dealt with it only made him stubborn and determined which Donatello admired, but not when it caused him to hide an illness like he'd tried to do.

Leo's bed was not made, a dead give away that the oldest had been feeling unwell from the get go.

“ Why didn't you tell us bro?” Mikey asked, watching as Don tucked Leo up in his covers, fetching a few spare blankets from the cupboard just to be helpful as he spoke, Mike could see even now his brother was shaking despite how warm his forehead was to touch.

“ 'Cause he's so freakin stubborn.” Raph answered his taller sibling, moving to watch from the entrance to Leo's perfectly clean room, the way he liked it.

No one dared moving anything, not just here but in the lair itself. The brothers and their father were very good at it these days, growing up had been a challenge though, especially with forgetful young turtles who forgot to put toys away as an example.

“ Watch him a moment.” Don commanded while heading out the door, Raphael letting him pass while Mikey moved in to the room, setting Leo's cane down in it's usual place.

Leo cracked open his icy eyes as Mike grew closer it was uncanny sometimes how you could get lost in the beautiful shade they were,, the way Leo seemed to look in just the right direction as if focused, yet Leo himself would never see for himself, never see colours or faces.

Leonardo also had this 'freaky ability' as Mikey liked to say of 'looking' at others as if he could read deep into their very souls, sometimes Leo just looked so focused you'd never guess he was blind.

Don returned with a bottle of water, pills and a thermometer.

“ Sorry..had to explain to sensei what was going..not that I hard to go much into detail you know how he seems to know these things?”

Stressed Donatello always talked way more than he should! Known fact. “ Open up Leo, these will help you feel better.”

“ I'm sorry.”

“ Don't even start, open up.” Don dropped a pill in Leo's open mouth, gently tapping his lips after with the top of the water bottle, letting him know it was there and to take a sip. The process was repeated for the second pill.

“ Thermometer, Leo,” Obediently Leo opened up, closing his mouth when he felt the object slide under his tongue.

“ Does anywhere else hurt?”

“ No.” came the muffled answer around the thermometer.

“ You answered quickly, are you sure? You know I'll check.”

“ Um-hum.”

When the thermometer was done Don gently pulled it out, confirming his older brother was suffering from a high temperature, not dangerously high but enough to be on strict bed rest.

“ Rest Leo, don't go all sneaky on us either, because we are going to take turns making sure you have everything you need.”

Leo's mask crinkled as he glared again, that ' freaky' ability to really look the other in the eye, icy blue eyes meeting gray a moment, or so it felt, they moved to close soon after.

Mikey pulled a chair up beside Leo's bed, having rushed off and collected his latest comic.

“ I got first watch, don't worry Leo! I'll read the latest Justice Force issue for you.”

To which Leo wished sometimes, he'd been born deaf rather than blind.

Honestly though he couldn't ask for better family. Yawning Leo nuzzled his beak into the covers and thankfully fell asleep not long after Mikey had scared everyone off as he actually did start reading out his comic, describing everything in detail even though he was aware Leo was fast asleep.

 

 


	3. The Coffeetron 9000

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Written by Az

 

Mikey watches Donnie slave away in his makeshift laboratory, using his various tools to zap together yet another amazing invention to make their family's life just that little bit easier. He smiles to himself as the genius curses under his breath, before finally rolling his eyes and jumping into the old train car.

He bee line's for his older brother and leans both arms on his head, peering over them to see what he's doing.

“Go away, Mikey,” Donnie says absent-mindedly, goggles over his eyes as he zaps at various little thingamajigs on the circuit board, “I'm busy.”

“Duh,” Mikey snorts, rolling his eyes, “What're ya working on?”

Donnie pauses for a moment, before straightening up and slipping his goggles onto his forehead – pushing Mikey off in the process.

“It's a wearable echo-locational device, designed to vibrate at various frequencies depending on how close – or far away – an object is,” he explains, shooting Mikey a sheepish smile, “I thought it might make Leo's life a little easier. Well, if I can get the movement sensor to work properly anyway.”

Mikey glances at the mess around them, the various half-finished – some some not even started – projects littering the tricked-out makeshift lab. Ranging from the toaster that Leo keeps breaking 'by accident to every poor piece of tech unfortunate enough to meet the business end of Raph's sai when he's in a rampage, not a single piece of equipment in this lab seems to scream out 'Donnie' to him.

Even his old game remote is sitting amongst the clutter, as if Donnie plans on trying to repair the old thing even though they'd replaced it ages ago. Donnie follows his gaze and frowns.

“Mikey...” he starts, before shaking his head lightly and pinching his brow – another migraine, probably, “I'll get around to it eventually, I promise, I've just-”

“Is there anything of yours in here?” Mikey interrupts, eyeing the organised chaos around them with a small frown of his own.

“What?” Don asks, flabbergasted, “I- _what_?”

“'Cause all I'm seein' is broken crap, dude,” Mikey continues, gesturing towards Donnie's physical embodiment of a to-do list, “Leo's toaster, Raph's many, _many_ victims, my old remote – no way, is that Ape's DVD player? _Dude_.”

Mikey shoots Donnie an unimpressed look, causing the smaller turtle to fold in on himself and scratch the back of his head.

“I... She asked and I-”

“What happened to your personal projects, bro?” Mikey asks, cutting him off and kneeling in front of him, “Like that coffee robot you wanted to build, or those upgrades you wanted to make to the Shell Sled?”

Donnie's mouth opens and closes for a long moment, before he lowers his head and looks away, ashamed. Mikey's frown deepens and he reaches out to rest his hand on his smaller, yet stockier big brother.

“I... I just haven't had the time, I guess,” Donnie says after a long moment, fidgeting with his hands, “I mean, you know how Raph and Leo are with technology and if _someone_ doesn't repair it, no one will, and I know you're all counting on me, so I thought-”

“You'd what? Slave away all day without a single thanks? Shell no, bro, if I get to play video games all day then you get to make your awesome coffee robots and take a little D-time for a change,” Mikey states, before grabbing his brother by the hands and pulling him out of his seat, “C'mon, time to have some fun.”

“But, Leo's goggles-”

“Can wait, dude,” Mikey snorts, dragging him out of the train car and towards the elevator, “Let's go!”

  
  


Donnie heaves out an audible sigh as Mikey pulls into the junk yard, parking the Battle Shell behind the usual hunk of trash and opening the driver side door.

“What're we doing here, Mike?” Donnie asks almost reluctantly, opening his own door and joining Mikey in front of the vehicle, “I really should be-”

“Taking in the fresh air,” Mikey interrupts, grinning at the unimpressed look on his older brother's face.

“ _Mikey_...” Donnie admonishes.

“So, what d'ya wanna build, bro?” Mikey asks, before gesturing to the junk yard as a whole, “We've got gadgets and gizmos a-plenty, who's-its and what's-its galore-”

Donie snorts, shoving a hand over his younger brother's mouth, “Okay, _okay,_ point taken – just stop singing. Please.”

Mikey's grin widens beneath his brother's palm.

“Dork,” Donnie says fondly, removing his hand and folding his arms against the chill. He turns his attention to the junk yard as a whole with a concentrated look on his face, eyes scanning over the various piles of junk for possible parts, “So what am I looking for here? Robot parts, car parts, random salvaging-?”

“You're missing the whole point bro,” Mikey laughs, resting his hand on the shorter turtle's head and leaning against him, “What do _you_ wanna build?”

Donnie stares at him for a long moment, before biting his lip and turning his attention back to the junk piles, scanning them slower, more meticulously this time.

“Uhm...” he bites his bottom lip as his gaze stops at a particularly large pile of junk, before he points to it with his right hand, “We could probably use some parts from that old air conditioner over there to build a basic motion sensor. Team it with that old coffee pot and those metal rods I might be able to build a gesture-operated caffeine dispenser. Maybe.”

Mikey's grin widens to the point of pain and he embraces his shorter brother from behind excitedly.

“This is gonna be so awesome, bro!”

  
  


“Ugh, this is so not awesome, bro,” Mikey whines, spinning around on Donnie's spare office chair as he zaps away at his coffee machine to be, “Gimme something to do, I'm bored.”

“You don't have to hang out with me, bro,” Donnie replies, lifting up the sensor-in-progress to inspect it, before putting it back down and getting to work at welding something else to it, “Why don't you go play Space Destructors or something?”

“And let you get back to doing everyone else's stuff? No way dude,” Mikey replies, resting his head on his hands, “Gimme something to weld together or something, I wanna help.”

Donnie purses his lips, staring at him for a long moment through his goggles.

“C'mon, I won't break anything _,_ I promise,” Mikey begs, pouting, “ _Please._ ”

Donnie stares at him for another long moment, tense, before finally heaving out a loud sigh and dropping his head into his hands. Mikey grins.

“ _Fine_ ,” Donnie replies, picking up a spare set of goggles and several small piece of scrap metal, “You can make the chasis – _don't_ burn yourself.”

Mikey takes the items gleefully, clearing a spot on a nearby desk and plonking them down right in the middle.

“Yes sir!”

  
  


Leo frowns at the sounds of metal clinking together coming from Donnie's makeshift laboratory, followed by he sounds of a blowtorch and various other mechanical equipment. He turns to face Raph's general direction as a large calloused hand settles itself on his shoulder.

“Where's Mikey?” Leo asks after a moment, frown deepening.

Raph pauses for a moment before speaking, “With Donnie – apparently they're workin' on something together.”

Leo's jaw drops and he blinks in surprise.

“You're kidding,” he says, turning back towards his brothers' general direction, “And he's actually letting Mikey do stuff?”

“Yup,” Raph grunts, before releasing his shoulder and tapping it lightly, “As far as I see it, if Donnie's found a way to keep Mikey's occupied long enough that he ain't drivin' me nuts every two seconds, it's a blessin'.”

Leo chuckles, stepping away from his taller brother and slipping into a defensive position – a silent acceptance to Raph's silent challenge. A tap on the shoulder almost always means he wants to spar, and from the slight rustling sound near Raph's feet, he was getting into position too.

“I suppose you're not wrong there,” Leo agrees, then he attacks.

  
  


Mikey yawns, cracking his back to the best of his ability before turning to Donnie with a sleepy grin on his face.

“Finished the chasis bro,” he says, rapping his knuckles against the freshly-welded metal, “Anything ya need me to tweak?”

“Nah, it's good,” Donnie replies, smiling his own sleepy smile as he takes the metal case from Mikey's desk and carries it over to his own, “I'm surprised you managed to finish it, actually, considering all those video games you could've been playing.”

Mikey laughs, rolling his chair over to Donnie's desk, “Yeah, man. I could've finished Tomb Destroyer like over three times by now, yet here I am doing science stuff with my favourite little big bro,” he fakes a shocked expression, “It's almost as if I like spending time with you, dude.”

“Oh no, we can't have that,” Donnie replies, mirroring Mikey's expression with a hand over his head, “God forbid I get some peace and quiet around here.”

“I know right.”

The two share a look before bursting into laughter, Donnie's chuckles quieter than Mikey's own. Donnie shakes his head fondly, rolling his eyes, before he turns back to his desk and goes back to fiddling with what looks like some kind of circuit board.

Mikey glances at the clock and yawns. 3:56am. Bleh.

“Go to bed, Mikey,” Donnie says after a moment, looking up from the board with a small smile on his face, “I promise I'll wake you up when I'm done.”

A grin overtakes Mikey's face and he side-hugs his bro in thanks, “Sweet – can't wait to see the finished product dude!”

Donnie rolls his eyes and pushes him away, smiling widely.

“Yeah, yeah – just go to bed.”

  
  


Guns at the ready, Mikey blasts alien upon alien as they tried to invade his flying pirate ship, bitch-slapping a particularly persistent ugly off the side of his ship with a giant foam finger before throwing it at another invader.

He shrieks as an alien manages to pin him down, murder in it's eyes as it opens it's mouth to reveal many _many_ teeth in order to say:

“Wake up, Mikey!”

“Wha-?!” Mikey all but shrieks, jolting upright in his bed only to come face to face with his older brother, “Donnie?”

“Are you okay? You were having a nightmare,” Donnie says, sitting beside him and resting a hand on his shoulder.

“Nah, it was just the aliens, no biggie,” Mikey replies after a moment, wiping the sweat from his brow before turning to his brother with a wide grin, “You finished it?”

“Almost,” Donnie replies, smiling slightly, “I'm actually here to get you up for training. Sensei's orders.”

Mikey groans, flopping back down on the bed and dragging the pillow over his face, “Ugh, no fair.”

“C'mon Mikey, before I get Raph to get you up instead,” Donnie says, a smile lacing his tone.

Mikey pulls down the pillow enough to glare at him.

“I hate you sometimes.”

  
  


“Et voila!” Donnie says, gesturing towards the coffee machine on his desk, “What do you think?”

“It's... a coffee machine,” Raph replies after a long moment, cock his brow in confusion.

Mikey snorts, slinging his arm around his hotheaded brother's shoulder and grinning like a lunatic.

“Oh ye of little faith, this is not just any coffee machine – it is the coffee machine to end all coffee machines!” Mikey announces, gesturing towards the machine, “The Coffeetron 9000!”

“ _Mikey_ ,” Donnie says, flustered, as he scratches his cheek lightly, “It's just a motion-sensing coffee dispenser, that's all.”

“' _It's just a motion-sensing coffee dispenser_ ',” Mikey mimics, letting go of Raph, stepping beside Donnie and slipping on the machine, “Check it before you wreck it bros, because this baby not only makes you a, quality might I add, cup of joe in minutes with naught but a wave of my hand, _but_ it's also Leo proof. Just wave your hand in front of it and,”

“Hello. This is the Coffeetron 9000, dudes. Thumbs up for black, peace sign for white and clap for sugars!” The machine says, voice recording by Mikey of course.

Raph groans, burying his head in his hands, “Really, Mike?”

Leo grins, taking a small step forward.

“May I give it a try?” He asks, facing in Mikey's general direction.

The two creators share a look, before Donnie turns to Leo with a shy, but wide grin on his face.

“Go ahead.”

“Okay,” Leo says, before lifting his hand in an awkward thumbs up, “Is this good?”

“One black cup of gross- I mean goodness comin' right up, dude! If you're Leo, you're only two paces away from sweet, sweet caffiene,” The machine announces, before a small plastic cup drops down into the holder and both coffee and water begin to fill it.

Leo's smile widens and he turns towards Donnie, “This is amazing, Donnie.”

Donnie smiles shyly, shifting his stance and hooking his thumbs into his belt.

“Ah, it was nothing. Mikey wanted me to build something for myself, so, y'know, why not make an automated coffee machine?” He replies.

“It's about time,” Raph says from his position by the other desk, gesturing towards the various junk around them, “Any longer and I would'a dragged ya outta the lair myself. Good job, Mike.”

“Yeah,” Leo agrees, reaching out for his younger brother until he finally manages to find his forearm, “Thank you,” he turns towards Donnie – well, almost, “We were starting to worry about you, bro.”

Mikey grins, before slinging his arm around Donnie's shoulders and tugging him to his side. Donnie smiles sheepishly, scratching his cheek again.

“Thanks guys,” Donnie says after a moment, before looking up at Mike with a reserved grin.

Mike's grin widens and he side-hugs him harder as the coffee machine pings, announcing the coffee's ready.

“No problemo, bro – you needed it.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A TINY DRABBLE THEN IT JUST DIDNT STOP.


	4. Help

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Written by Az

Once upon a time Don used to ask for help. He'd go up to Raph in his makeshift gym and ask him to help him move the fridge, or something equally heavy to his lab. He'd go up to Mikey on the sofa and ask if he could drag him along to the junk yard. Sometimes he'd even go up to Leo and ask him to hold something steady for a moment so he could tinker with it.

But after more rejections than he could count on both his hands, feet and the hands and feet of his entire family... he just gave up. It'd be different if they rejected him because they couldn't be bothered, or found the tasks boring, but the truth is that was almost never the case.

When he'd ask Raph, he'd agree in a heartbeat – but the moment Leo walked into something, or tripped over a wire Don didn't manage to secure properly, he was gone. When he'd ask Mike, well, half the time he did wave him off in favour of being lazy, but when he'd finally get him to agree... same thing. Leo just had to unintentionally remind them all that he's disabled and any offer to help Don was forgotten.

Don sighs to himself for the umpteenth time as he hauls the old fridge onto his back and all but drags himself back to the Battle Shell, taking care not to damage it too much as it settles it down amongst everything else he'd salvaged for the evening.

He lets himself pant for a moment, before turning and leaning against the vehicle's back door.

“Need any help, Donatello?” The Professor asks from the nearby homeless camp, hands folded in front of himself with a small smile.

Don waves him off, “Nah, I'm okay. Is that washing machine still here?”

The Professor shoots him a slightly disappointed look.

“Of course,” he replies, gesturing in the general direction where he saw it last, “You're sure you don't need any help?”

Don laughs and pats his bicep lightly.

“Don't worry, Professor – I can handle it,” he says, smiling, “Thanks for the offer, though. I appreciate it.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> aghhh sorry this one's so short guys I WAS GONNA WRITE MORE DRABBLES BUT then i didn't so... have a solo drabble of Donnie angst. XD


	5. Family Broments feat. Pain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Written by Az

Sometimes as he watches his eldest son struggling to find his way across a room, Splinter can’t help but wonder what life would have been like if the young turtle had not landed on his head all those years ago.

He can remember like it was yesterday - the sounds of the traffic, the smells of the street as the TCRI van spun into view, knocking a small canister of ooze and four baby turtles down the sewer drain. Surprised, he had scampered across the street and into the drain to find four ooze-covered turtles - one unconscious from the fall and donning a bruise upon his head.

The rest after that they say is history.

“Hiya!” Leonardo shouts, before knocking the youngest of his brothers down with a simple roundhouse kick.

“Oww! No fair Leo,” Michelangelo whines, landing on his shell with a soft thud before removing his blindfold, “I call foul play on accounts of an unfair advantage.” 

Leonardo smiles, offering him his hand and pulling him up when he grasps it, “Best two out of three?”

“No thanks, my shell’s had enough of a beating for once week,” Michelangelo replies, before reaching out and squeezing his older brother’s shoulder in a reassuring gesture, “I’m gonna hit the showers - later dudes.”

Splinter smiles as his youngest son takes off towards the bathroom, before turning to his eldest and patting his arm with a reassuring gesture of his own.

“Very good, my son,” he says before removing his hand, “As always.”

Leonardo’s smile turns self conscious and he nods, scratching his chin, “Thank you, sensei.”

–

Donnie wouldn’t deny that his vision of the future had never been pretty, but never in his darkest dreams would he have imagined this. His family estranged, the Shredder having had taken over the world and his father… his father no longer part of this world.

He turns to his armless younger brother, the steely expression on his face scarier than anything else around them purely because it does not belong there.

“Where are Leo and Raph?” He asks after a short moment, resisting the urge to bite his lip. “We’ll need them if we’ve any chance in going against the Shredder.”

Mikey looks away, towards Master Splinter’s… grave stone and rests his hand on the banging piece of wood.

“Raph’s…” he takes a deep breath, turning away from the grave, “Raph’s problem got the best of him, and I suppose you could say Leo never saw it coming,” he snorts humourlessly and turns back to the grave, “He always did have too much faith in people.”

Donnie’s jaw unhinged and his throat goes dry, “Y- You don’t mean-”

“They’re dead, Donnie,” Mikey states, before finally turning away from the grave and heading in the direction they came, “Perhaps in another life things might’ve been different. Who knows.”

It takes him a moment to process the fact that his father and two of his brothers are- are dead, before he manages to steel himself and trail after his youngest-turned-eldest brother.

This world is a nightmare.

–

“It’s not a problem,” Raph growls, yanks his arm out of Donnie’s grip and slipping his wrist band back around his wrist, “Leave it alone, egghead.”

“You’re cutting your wrists!” Donnie protests, yanking the arm back, “I’d say that’s a problem, Raph.”

“I told ya to leave it alone,” he replies defensively.

Donnie purses his lips for a long moment, the temptation to argue almost too strong to resist, before he just… slumps in his chair and turns away.

There’s an awkward silence.

“Well, I’m just gonna-”

“Do you want to die?” Donnie interrupts, staring at his hands as they clench one another in his lap.

“What?”

Donnie looks up, “Do you want to die? Is that why you’re- you’re cutting yourself?”

Raph stares back at him, a shocked expression on his face. He blinks a few times, glancing between the shorter turtle’s hands and face before finally slumping back into his chair, almost defeated.

“No,” he replies after a long beat, eyeing his wrists.

“May I ask why?”

Raph goes to bite his lip, stops himself and looks to the side, brows drawn. Donnie can practically see the different emotions skating across his face - anger, fear, self-hatred. It’s disconcerting.

“I…” he starts, before looking away with an irritated expression, “I dunno how to explain it, it just feels good I guess.”

“Feels good?” Donnies prompts, leaning forward slightly and taking his brothers palms into his own.

“Yeah,” Raph replies, fingers twitching but not pulling away, “Like… Like I don’t gotta think for a while when I do it, everything just kinda switches off.”

Donnie nods, if only to appease his brother, “When did you start? Self-harming, I mean.”

“It’s not-”

Donnie shoots him an unimpressed look. Raphael mouth snaps shut. Point taken.

“You know I won’t judge you, right?” Donnie says after a moment, squeezing his brother’s lightly.

Raph snorts quietly and withdraws his hands, but not before giving his brother a gentle squeeze back, “Yeah, I know.”

“I just ain’t ready to talk about it yet,” he continues, “I just- nah, not yet.”

Donnie’s lip threatens to twitch into a frown for a moment before he smooths it out to a soft smile and reaches out to pat his brother on the arm. A silent ‘it’s okay’.

Raph smiles back, returning the gesture in thanks, before turning to leave the makeshift lab. Just as he’s about to jump off of the old train cart, he stops and turns around, expression conflicted.

“Raph?”

“Uh, could ya not tell Leo and Master Splinter yet? I ain’t really ready for a lecture, y'know.”

Donnie really does frown this time, folding his arms. He wants to protest that their father, at least, has the right to know but… but it really isn’t his place to share anyone else’s secrets. Raph will share it in his own time.

“Okay…”

“Thanks, bro. I owe ya.”

Hopefully.

–

The last place Mikey ever thought he’d see Leo was standing in front of the bathroom mirror, seemingly contemplating his reflection. Emphasis on the seemingly - bats have better vision than their fearless leader, and their vision’s terrible.

“You okay, dude?” Mikey asks after a long moment, startling the shorter turtle - which never happens.

“Mikey!”

“Yeah, you’re not okay - I wasn’t even being quiet, dude,” Mikey replies with a snort, leaning against the door frame, “What’s with the staring into the distance, bro?”

Leo goes to reply before clearly deciding against it as he turns back to the mirror. One of his hands extends to meet the glass surface and stays there.

Mikey cocks his brow. What?

“What do I look like?” He asks after a long moment, voice sounding almost… shy? No, not shy - vulnerable. Definitely vulnerable.

“You,” Mikey replies without missing a beat, grinning at the scowl that forms on his brother’s face, “Haha, just kidding bro. Want the full explanation or the basics, cause I’m down with both.”

Leo’s scowl lightens, only to be replaced with a small frown, “Both?”

“Both?”

Leo goes to scold him, before closing his mouth with an amused smirk, “Both is good.”

“Hm…” Mikey starts, leaning against the door frame with a thoughtful frown, “Your skin is green like… like the taste of a green apple - kinda bright, tangy but pretty delicious all around.”

“I’m not sure I’m comfortable about where this is going,” Leo interrupts sceptically, cocking his hip to the side.

Mikey flicks him in the arm lightly, “Shush dude, adults are speaking.”

Leo glowers, Mikey grins.

“Hm, well, your eyes are blue like ice, cold and sharp, or maybe an electric shock - I can’t decide,” Mikey continues, tapping his chin, “Your face… I dunno how to describe it dude, it’s like a mix between a leader and a resting bitch face, which is-”

“I know what a ‘resting bitch face’ is, Mikey,” Leo interrupts, looking amused, “And its fine if you don’t want to answer my question, it was stupid anyway.”

“But dude, I am answering your question,” Mikey protests, “You look like a green apple tastes and-”

“My eyes look like an ‘electric shock’,” Leo says, folding his arms, “That doesn’t make any sense.”

“What good is telling a blind guy he’s green if he doesn’t know what the shell green is in the first place?” Mikey points out, grinning.

Leo opens his mouth to retort before closing it again, gobsmacked. Mikey: 1, Leo: 0.

“Colour’s just light bro, everyone knows it,” Mikey says, before leaning forward to pull the smaller turtle in for a hug.

Leo works his jaw for a long moment, before he finally relaxes into the embrace and returns it. Mikey’s grin dwindles down into a small smile.

“So, if I’m apples and ice, then what are you?” Leo asks after a comfortable silence, pulling away from the taller turtle.

“A million bucks, duh.”

Leo’s laughs echoes throughout the bathroom, “Of course.”


	6. Hydrophobia

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Written by Dash

“I remember this one, it was the time you didn't wait for my signal to go..but you went on your own accord..I recall hearing you leap from our position.. then the smell of blood. It was a few years ago now.”  
“ Yer? Ya think I've learnt my lesson since then?” Raphael questioned, sitting back from what he was doing, folding his arms across his plastron as the shortest turtle turned to reach a hand out for him once more.

“ No.” Leonardo replied with a laugh, a leaf green digit fondly running down the scar he was talking about now he'd relocated it.  
The way he traced the line on the others arm was as if the blind turtle was following a map, his icy pupils blinking in rapid succession, though he was focused on the old wound, his actual eyes were looking towards the door, something Raphael and other family members had grown accustomed to given the fact the leader could see nothing.

“ Enough of that, turn round bro.”  
Leo lowered his form back in to the bathtub with a splash complying with the red-banded turtles order, leaning forward slightly waiting till he felt the hard scrubbing brush once more against his carapace.

Raphael continued to work on Leo's grime covered shell, something they often did for each other considering it was near impossible to reach, let alone do a good job.  
Leo's had become particularly dirty while helping Donnie recently with the battle shell, even if it was helping to hold leaky pipes while both were stuck under the dripping vehicle it certainly had covered him in enough grease that the smell alone had become off putting for the leader's extra sensitive nose.

“ Ugh what did you and Donnie do? Bathe in grease? Roll in oil?” Raphael snorted, taking a bottle of soap and squeezing half the contents over his maskless brother, the snort he received in reply was confirmation enough that he wasn't far off the truth.

Still after a few moments Leo relaxed his form, their carapace being extra sensitive due to the many nerves running through them, the soothing procedure could do nothing to get Leo's mind away from his thoughts though.  
One hand gripped the side of the tub like his life depended on it, the though of letting go and going below water when blind was a terrifying thought, one of his worst childhood memories. 

\---

His mind drifted back to what seemed many years ago now, he wasn't more than four years old. Splinter had no choice back then but to take the children with him while he searched for food. The easiest path to the dumpsters they often raided was via a water-works near where they currently lived.

Leo had been taught to hold tight to the end of Splinter's tail, the rat making sure to tread carefully and at a pace his blind son could navigate without falling over or getting left behind.  
Usually this routine worked every time, even giving Leo that bit of independence as he talked excitedly with his siblings, who didn't have to look out for their disabled brother, making him no less adequate than them.

The path they traveled was extra slippery that day he remembered, the water level higher than usual due to a constant downpour and the water having no place to go other that lap over the edge like the tide meeting the shore.  
It only took a moment for the dirty water to splash over the small group, causing Leo to lose his grip being swept in the water along with his brothers.

At once Splinter dived to their rescue, gathering his children from the murky water.  
It might have only been for around a few seconds but for Leo, yet it felt like a life time.  
He was being taken by the current, pushed under water where he could hear nothing..his little body being thrown in all directions so he had no bearings, his small feet and arms desperately trying to hold onto something, anything.

Thankfully, arms wrapped around him, pulling him above water. At first he struggled, tears stringing his eyes as he gasped for air, his head and heart pounding, the poor turtle distressed and disorientated.

“ Shh Leonardo! It's okay now, I have you.”

His fathers voice calmed the turtle instantly, shivering, he simply cried while clinging to his fathers chest, joined moments later by his siblings, all of them safe and in their father's arms having managed to grab hold of items floating in the water.

It was something he'd never quite gotten over.

“ Hey! Earth to Leo! I said I'm done.”  
Raph narrowed azure orbs when his brother still didn't respond.  
“ I ain't repeating it a third time Fearless, said I’m done with ya shell.”

Blinking, Leo released he was gripping both sides of the bath like a lifeline, keen to be out of the water despite how shallow it was, much preferring taking a shower.

“ Thanks Raph...”  
“C'mon lets get ya out of there, and don't thank me jus' yet..wait till you feel the state of my shell its still got treasure in from last nights trip to the junkyard.”

Accepting Raph's hand, the younger turtle drained and refilled the bath tub, throwing Leo a warm towel, Before trading places with his older brother. If he noticed the pale face Leo had, he did well not to mention it they each had their demons, getting Leo set up with what he needed to clean his shell this time around, giving him something other than his mind to focus on.

With a smile, Leo settled on the stool, taking up the brush as he set himself to his task.


	7. Tonsillitis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Written by Az

It all started with an odd feeling in the back of his throat as he was running maintenance on his brother's bar fridge, something he didn't think anything of at the time. If anything, he assumed his body had just picked a weird way of telling him he was hungry so he'd just had Mikey him an arm army lunch and that was that.

Until the feeling came back with a vengeance and his nose started dropping like a tap. Donnie groans as he sniffs it in for the umpteenth time, rubbing his throat with his free hand as he sketches up the schematics for some well-needed upgrades to the battle shell.

He groans again as a heavy set of footsteps make their way into his makeshift lab and wipes his nose against the bandages covering his forearms. He is so not in the mood for this right now.

"Uh, hey Donnie," Raph says after a long moment, fiddling with one of his wrenches he'd picked up from the desk, "Ya busy?"

He swallows against the heavy feeling in his throats and puts down his pencil. His ego can wait.

"Not really, just sketching up a few designs," Donnie replies with a small smile, before gesturing towards the spare office chair, "What's up?"

Raph picks at the fresh bandages covering his own arms, looking to the side with a conflicted expression on his face. If anger and sadness could have a baby, it would be Raph's face.

His lips twitch slightly but he restrains them from anything else. Now is not the time.

"Yknow how ya told me to come to ya if I was, y'know, feelin' like adding to the collection and all so... yeah," he finished lamely, brows furrowing as deep as they can go, "That's it."

Donnie rubs his throat lightly, and he nods for Raph to continue. His nostrils twitch lightly. He needs to sneeze, damn it.

"It's just... ah fuck it, ya know what it is," Raph continues after a beat, collapsing into the spare chair and looking to the side, "I ain't good at this talking out my feelings bullshit, ya know this right?"

Donnies nostrils twitch again, followed by his eyelid in an attempt to contain it. Stupid pollen, how'd it even get underground?

"Donnie-?"

"Achoo!" Donnie covers his mouth with his hands to the best of his ability, "Achoo! Achoo! Ugh, damn it," he scratches beneath his nose lightly and shoots Raph a sheepish look, "Sorry bro, could you repeat that last part-? Achoo!!"

"You okay, bro?"

Donnie buries his head in his hands and groans. His head feels like it's full of cotton.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Donnie replies with a small smile, rubbing his throat, "Just a little sneezy. What triggered you?"

Raph cringes, looking away again, "Ya really gotta phrase it like that?"

"Sorry bro," Donnie apologises sheepishly, "I couldn't think of a better way to put it."

Raph shoots him another concerned look, before opening his mouth to continue-

"Achoo!! Damn it!"

"Yeah okay, my shit can wait - you ain't fine," Raph growls, going over to Donnie and slapping his hand on his forehead before he could protest, "You're a little hot - open ya mouth."

Donnie purses his lips for a long moment, before finally dropping his shoulders and opening his mouth to him with a sarcastic 'ahh'.

Raph shoots him an unimpressed look before forcing his mouth into the light and peering in.

Whatever he sees makes him cringe. Donnie rubs his throat again, grimacing.

"What?"

"I'm gettin' Master Splinter, stay right here."

And just like that Raph's gone. Donnie slumps into his seat with a grimace and sneezes into his hands again.

Great.

\--

"Yup, he's sick," April says after a long moment, pulling away from peering down Donnie's throats and turning to Splinter, "Good thing you called when you did, Case and I were about to go out for the night."

"Thank you for coming," Splinter replies with a small smile.

Donnie heaves a sigh through his nostrils and moves to sit up. He really has better places to be than lying in a bed playing sick-

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, what do you think you're doing Mister? Down," April orders, pushing him back against the sheets. He doesn't even bother to resist, instead sighing heavily.

"Can I at least have my pen and paper?" He all but croaks, sniffling, "I have an important schematic I'm working on and-"

"No way, you're going to rest," April replies, lips pursed.

"But-"

"But nothing," she states, levelling a dark look at him, "It looks like tonsillitis so I'll have to go and get you some throats medicine. Don't even think about leaving this bed, understood?"

"...Understood."

\--

Donnie sighs for the umpteenth time as he stares at the ceiling, hand perpetually resting on his throats for the time being. Honestly, it's not even that bad - not enough for him to be confined to quarters with nothing to do.

Ugh, not fair.

He blinks in surprise as the door is cracked open, the intruder pausing for a second to probably check if anyone sees them before entering. Donnie smiles lightly and extends his hand in a small wave.

"Hey Raph," he croaks, before patting the mattress beside him, "Sorry about earlier with the sneezing - still wanna talk?"

Raph shoots him an unimpressed look as he closes he door behind him and makes his way over to the bed, holding something out.

Donnies mouth parts slightly.

"My... schematics book?"

"You were whinin' about it earlier, thought it might shut ya up," Raph says with a snort, "Can't have that big brain of yours burnin' out on us too early."

Donnies mouth twitches up into a small smile and he accepts the book, flipping it over to his current work in progress and heaving a satisfied sigh when he sees it's undamaged state. Raph coughs lightly and hands him the pencil too, making him smile gratefully. Perfect.

"Thanks, Raph," he says after a moment, before frowning lightly, "I was serious though, do you still need to talk?"

Raph snorts again and punches Donnies shoulder lightly, smirking.

"Nah," he chuckles, "Leo got me to burn off some steam with him in the dojo earlier. Turns out swappin' fists is as effective as swappin' stories," his smirk softens into a smile, "I'm good, bro - but ya better get better fast otherwise Leo's gonna pace a hole through the floor."

Donnie laughs weakly, rolling his eyes.

"Alright, point taken," he croaks, before gesturing at the door, "Now get out before you catch it - tonsillitis' contagious."

Raph grimaces and backtracks quickly, "Point taken. Later, bro."

"Yeah, yeah - talk to you later."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanted to give you guys a huge thanks from both of us for commenting/giving kudos to this fic! <3


	8. Scar Stories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Written by Dash

“Hold still my son, the more you move the longer this is going to take.” Splinter let out a sigh as furry fingers wrapped the bandages slightly tighter around Raphael's bleeding ankle.  
The old rat had spent the last few minutes cleaning the wound, by this point the hot-headed turtle was more than agitated.

“ I am tryin' geez..” Raphael was doing his best not to squirm, his gaze trying to look past the rice paper doors to see if Mikey was doing a good job on patching up Donatello, the resident doctor joining Raphael in sustaining injury after an ambush.

“Patience.” The rat reprimanded, his tone showing that he didn't appreciate his ill tempered son making his job harder.  
“ duh if I had patience.. Leo wouldn't have had to step in, he told us to wait..had a plan..ugh shoulda listened and now I got Don hurt, I'm such an idiot- ouch damn it.”  
“ Raphael.”  
Again Splinter used a stern tone, finishing up with a final wrap of bandages, patient as always as he waited for his son to let out all his anger.

“That one is going to leave another scar, I suggest you take it easy for the next few days.” The way Splinter narrowed his eyes told Raphael it wasn't optional but a direct order.  
“ Great..”

As the mutated rat rose and began packing away the first aid box, Raph simply sat where he was left, his azure gaze seemed to glaze over as he fell silent.  
Absentmindedly he traced some of his previous scars, the more noticeable ones that showed across both his thighs.

“ They're part of who we are.”  
Shaking his head to clear the ill thoughts gathering in his mind, Raphael blinked when he noticed his father sitting mere inches from him, the old rats gaze on what his son was doing.

“ Your scars.” Splinter answered, reaching a furred finger to trace the long one that ran across his own muzzle.  
“ They just remind me I'm an idiot.” Came the reply, the turtle scoffing, rolling his eyes while arms moved from his scars to cross stubbornly across his plastron. 

“ No Raphael, how did you get this one?” a finger pointing to one of the many scars covering the red-banded turtle.  
“ That was when Mikey slipped..it was icy on the rooftop..If I didn't grab him the doofus woulda gone right over, caught mah leg when I lunged to grab him.”

“ Right and this one?”  
Raph glanced at the one his father was pointing towards, looking thoughtful a moment before he answered.  
“ When the lair roof came down, when the mousers attacked..Leo wasn't able to move in time.”  
“ I see, and this?”  
“ When Don was- ”  
Splinter grinned, Raphael falling silent, finally understanding what his father was getting at.

“ They're a part of who you are, and memories both good and bad. Some of those scars are there, and because of that your brothers are alive. While those aren't necessary good memories, they remind us we are alive, not just you, those you love included.” 

Raph simply nodded in understanding, feeling self-conscience suddenly, realising he really was the family protector in that aspect having the scars to prove it, there was nothing he wouldn't do for his siblings if it meant they were safe.

“ Yer right, thanks Master Splinter.”  
“ Anytime my son.”  
“ I gotta go, yer know check on Don..hey if he get's a scar today for covering my ass, guess that makes us even for the once I took for him yeah?”

Splinter simply let out a chuckle, smiling as he watched the temperamental turtle rise to his feet slowly, limping out to check on his brothers.


	9. Growing Pains

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Written by Dash

“ I think....I'm dying..what is that light.?..wait for me light I'm coming!!”

“ Mikey, no need to be so dramatic..you aren't dying!”  
“ Well it sure feels like it dude..”  
The youngest turtle replied with a whine, dramatically draping the back of his hand across his face.

Donatello gave an audible sigh, gently applying a little more pressure against Mikey's calves While admittedly they looked swollen and sore, even warm to the touch, still he was far from dying.  
“ I can tell your legs are painful, your left leg more so than your right. Let me just..”

Mikey winced the moment Don's digits brushed behind his knees, letting out a small whine. The resident doctor at once proceeded in unwrapping the bandages his brother wore along with any other wraps on his legs.  
“ This just about confirms what I suspected..”  
“ What? What have you suspected?”

Mikey's honey eyes grew wide in fear, not liking the way Don gave his knee a quick squeeze as if confirming something when he winced, before going back to typing away on his computer, gray eyes narrowed in concentration.

“ Growing pains..while it usually effects younger children I'd place a bet on saying the mutagen along with the fact you're the tallest out of us four of us is causing you pain...another growth spurt? Who knows..”  
Mikey had always liked the fact he was the youngest, yet tallest turtle- he rubbed it in their faces daily especially Raphael, the second tallest.

“ Oh, so I might grow even taller?”  
“ Hmm..it's more than likely your muscles are changing to accommodate your taller frame, but as the only four giant mutated turtles in existence I'd say anything is possible.” 

Don assumed as he moved away from his computer and back to Mikey.  
“ So what do I need to do?”  
“ There isn't much we can do for it, though when you're aching as bad as you are today I'd recommend rest and some pills, try not to bounce about and aggravate anything, I'll tell Leo you're not joining us on patrol tonight. ”

“ So to cure my growing pains I need to watch tv and play video games...seems reasonable. OH OH But Donnie, please pleaseeeeeee don't tell Raph?”

“ Tell me what?”

Raph as usual entered Don's personal space without so much as a knock on the door, a pout in place that hid his worry.  
“ Leo said ya footsteps sounded uneven this mornin' and that you yelped in pain takin' the stairs, whatcha do?”

Don and Mikey exchanged a look, the genius shrugging and heading out of the lab, refusing to get involved in the antics involving the two warm-banded turtles.

“ Eh...”  
Michelangelo couldn't lie to save his life, it didn't help when the azure eyed turtle seemed to stand over him, as if checking his sibling for any obvious injuries, he really did worry even if he kept a stoic expression.

“ Growing pains..”  
“ What...?”  
“ That's what's wrong, I've grown so tall, handsome and awesome that I had to have some repercussions right?”  
Raph's mask material crinkled as he wrinkled his beak, a sneer forming as he spoke.

“ And you couldn't tell me that?”  
“ Well no.” Mikey moved to sit up, swinging his long legs around so they dangled from the examination bench.  
“ Ya didn't wanna admit it hurts? 'cause you don't want me taking this piss outta ya?”  
“ Something like that.” Michelangelo admitted, throwing Raph that care-free lopsided grin of his.

“ Oh I ain't gonna make fun of ya Mikey.”  
“ Wait- why not.?”

“ Because if I wanna beat ya up for all the times you made dwarf jokes about me..I'm thinkin' for once yer ain’t gonna slip away...that and what if ya don't stop growing? I guess we could find you new place to live outside the lair, I'd promise not to always forget to feed ya.”  
Mikey gulped, trying his best not to whine.

“ No more..hobbit comments.”  
Mikey said sadly, rubbing at his painful knee joints.

“ Yeah 'cause ya might just end up as tall as Treebeard..! karma if ya ask me.”  
That got a smile out of the youngest at least.  
“ C'mon Mikey let me kick ya ass at some computer game before I go on patrol.” 

Helping Mikey to his feet, Raph lead the limping turtle of out the lab, this time a smile on both their faces.  
Not that is stopped Mikey ever from rubbing the fact he was the tallest turtle in his brother's faces, it only lasted as long as his latest growth spurt, sadly!


End file.
